Hungering
by sapphire blue-ruby red roses
Summary: Mai was caught by Ash several months ago, and the SPR team has gotten nowhere. Now, a new client shows up that has everyone spooked, especially Gene, who is having some curious problems of his own with Mai's body, and not all of them exactly normal. rated T to be save, rating most likely will go up, sequel to Hunted
1. Chapter 1: Stories

**I'm back for what I believe with be the final installment of my "**Hidden**" series, "**Hungering**". Sorry about that major cliffy from "**Hunted**", but you know, I'm just a jerk like that. I know this chapter is really short, but it's just getting a few plot ideas I have in mind rolling for now that you won't find out about for a long time. Next chapter will be much, much longer. We'll jump right in with a client and dream.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt in any way, shape or form.**

Chapter 1: Stories

"Once upon a time, there was a princess who lived high, high, high up in a tall tower overlooking the most beautiful valley you could ever imagine," Naru began softly. He lay on his side, facing Tamaki and Kamin. His eyes were closed, his head resting on his hand. His eyelids already felt heavy, despite the seemingly uneventful day at the office, but lately, that's how it had been. For months now, he'd been sleeping with the twins in his and Mai's bed, falling asleep when they did without much preamble.

Gene, presently residing in Mai's body, was taking the twin sized mattress in the twin's room. He bumped around the room quietly, typing up a log on the laptop he'd stolen from Lin's office, recording a short video or having fun discovering new things about a world he hadn't really been a part of for several years.

Tonight was no different. As Gene stumbled around the room, Naru recounted the princess tale to the twins adding his0 and their own twists into the story. Somehow, over the course of the many nights of retelling, it had become about a girl very much like Mai befriend the ghost knocking around her closet at night and frightening her while she cooked. The only difference was that Gene was being about ten times louder than he usually was, making it nearly impossible for the three to drop off to sleep, no matter how tired they were.

"Daddy, what is Daddy Gene doing?" Kamin asked, yawning loudly. She pulled the small brown otter that Gene had given her closer to her chest. It reminded her of Mai.

"He's being really loud," Tamaki finished, holding the tail of the otter in a small fist, yawning with Kamin.

Naru yawned along with the pair, holding a hand over his mouth. With effort, he managed to pull his eyelids up to blink slowly at them. "I don't know," he sighed truthfully, trying to find the motivation to push himself up. "I'll go check, alright. For now, why don't the two of you try to make up a new story?"

The two nodded their agreement, but he could already tell that they would have drifted well off into the land of dreams by the time he returned.

Groaning, his pushed himself up, slinging his legs over the side of the bed. His bare feet touched the floor, sending shivers rocketing up his spine. He shuffled for the door, pulling it open and shutting it as quietly as possible.

"What are you doing in here?" he asked, annoyance clear in his voice as he shoved open the door to the twin's currently occupied room. He frowned, staring down at his twin-in-his-fiancée's-body. "What are you doing?" he repeated.

Gene was on the floor in a pair of boy shorts and sports bra, flipping rapidly through a book. He glanced up for only a moment before returning to what he'd been doing. "I thought I'd found something that could have helped us," he said as if that explained all of the noise.

"And…?" Naru prompted, staring at him pointedly.

Gene growled under his breath, slamming the book shut. "Nothing, absolutely nothing. It wasn't what I thought it was. Plus, I couldn't find it in any of the books here. I think I need to go buy a few voodoo and hoodoo books. Maybe a few wiccan books as well."

"You are not bringing those into this house," Naru immediately said before pausing, "Wait, why?"

"Because I think it might help us, though it probably won't. Magic isn't real, psychic abilities are. I thought they might mention something about spirits like what we're dealing with. I've already checked all of the mainstream religions. Nothing."

"Why are you looking at religions?"

Gene shrugged. "Just something to do. I haven't been much help for the past couple months, and we haven't been able to get anywhere with what we have. Lin is stumped on the ring, necklace, and bracelet. We don't have any leads. We haven't **had** any leads since Mai was taken. I just thought I might try something new."

Sighing, Naru dropped down beside his twin, trying to ignore how having Mai's body here, but not **her**, was slowly crushing him. He'd missed Gene, of course, but Mai was different. Mai was special. "And you've found nothing so far. Why am I not surprised?" He dropped his chin into his hand as Gene slammed another book he'd been looking through shut and shoved it away from him. "I have to take the twins to school tomorrow," he mumbled, rubbing at his eyes.

Gene was silent for a long moment, only the sound of rustling papers filling the room. "You know what we need?" he finally asked, pulling something out from under the twin's bed and frowning down at it.

"What's that?" Naru asked, meaning the question for both Gene's question and the thing he held gingerly in his hands.

"A case," Gene said before flipping the dusty object open. "It's a photo album."

"Of what?" Naru asked, scooting closer.

"Of us as teenagers. Look, you're actually in a few of them," Gene said, flopping half on the album into Naru's lap, "When do you think she ever managed to take these?"

"When we weren't paying attention." Neither of them even had to say who they were talking about. He ran careful fingers over a picture of him, Gene and Christina, the twin's mother. "You were kind of a camera whore though, so these were probably all taken with your knowledge."

"You're such an asshole," Gene muttered, elbowing his twin hard. His voice softened as a stared down at a picture of Christina shoved far into the back of the album. "She was so beautiful. I wish I could have been there for her through this," he murmured, staring longingly down at a picture of the woman when she was heavily pregnant with the twins, her stomach bulging far away from her body.

A little twinge tugged at Naru's stony heart. One day, if they got her back –and they would get her back- Mai could look like that. She would have a gold ring on her finger and she'd be radiating that glow that all pregnant mothers get. At her sides would be Tamaki and Kamin, still young. They would be his family, and he would be happy. "Yeah," he mumbled almost silently to himself.

They were quiet as they flipped through the album, reminiscing about the pictures they found, teasing each other, silently wishing that the past and the future could meld into one world. When they'd finally analyzed each picture in detail, Naru stood, stretching his arms over his head. He dragged Gene to his feet. "I'm going to go to bed now."

"Night, idiot scientist," Gene replied, waving half-heartedly after his twin. He crawled under the quilt atop the twin's mattress as Naru made to leave. "Hey Naru," he called, bringing his twin to a stop.

"Hm?" Naru mumbled, looking tiredly back over his shoulder at Gene.

Gnawing on his lip as if considering something, Gene shook his head after a moment. "No, it's nothing. It can wait until later. Night."

"Goodnight," Naru said, flipping off the light and silently closing the door.

Gene listened closely as Naru padded back to the room where the twins soundly slept. When he heard the creak of bed springs, he slid from the mattress. Using only the light of the moon filtering through the blinds, he tiptoed down the hall into the bathroom. He closed the bathroom door before flipping on the dimmest light.

He stared hard into the mirror, boring holes into his own, navy blue eyes. "Where are you, Mai?" he whispered. A flicker of chocolate brown passed through his irises, and then the nausea hit.

**I know this chapter was really short, but like I said in the beginning notes, this is just establishing a few things. Next chappy will be much longer, and I hope to see you all there! See you soon!**


	2. Chapter 2: The Cage

**This one is a bit… headcanon-y in places, a lot of my chappies probably will be, but I hope you'll all like it. I had maybe a little too much fun with it towards the end.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

Chapter 2: The Cage

_Gene gasped, his eyes flying open. Darkness engulfed him when it should not. There should have still been tiny rays of moonlight and streetlight sneaking through his blinds, but there was nothing. It was utterly pitch black. He waited, and waited, and waited for his eyes to adjust, but it was as if there was nothing to adjust for._

_With effort, he slowed his racing mind, calming his breathing. 'Okay, first off, are you hurt?' he told himself, finding that an order, even from himself, would be easier to follow than just trying to think through this. He always found that to be so whenever anyone, not just him specifically, was panicking. Steps were good. Steps were methodical. Steps gave you something to concentrate on._

_Taking a deep breath, his slowly stretched out one limb, then another, until they were all stretched as far as they could go. No pain introduced itself. He seemed to be unhurt as far as he could tell. The next thing he noticed was that he didn't entirely feel like himself. He felt longer, taller, like he could reach out further._

_Sitting up cautiously, he discovered that the void wasn't completely unlit. A light emanating from his body shed light around him. The light was virtually useless seeing as there was nothing for it to light up. It just brightened the darkness to show –surprise!- more darkness._

_Gene sighed heavily, getting to his feet. He felt a lot taller too. Something was wrong. He glanced down at himself as he took the first steps toward whatever was waiting for him beyond the darkness._

_And now he knew where he was. He was in the spirit world. He couldn't imagine why he hadn't figured that out in the first place, but he decided that it just came down to the fact that he hadn't been to the spirit realm in several months, not since possessing Mai's body to keep it alive. He hadn't even had one dream since then._

_He flexed his long fingers, turning his hands over and over. He stretched out his arm in front of him, snorting at the fact that the spirit world seemed to have decided that his attire would be his brother's clothing. He lengthened his stride, stretching his legs for all he was worth._

_You'd think that a spirit, being none corporal and to many people just an idea, would be able to fit in whatever body that it pleased. That was highly untrue though. Sure, the spirit could __**fit**__ into any body, but that didn't mean that that body wasn't too small or too big. It was like someone stuffing their foot into a shoe two sizes too small for it. The spirit grew to fit its original body. It wasn't meant to be shoved into other people's bodies for the hell of it._

_For months, Gene had been cramped into Mai's body. The tight fit wasn't causing his spirit any long term damage, but it made for some hellish growing pains. He didn't think that a spirit could actually stretch a body, but Mai's body had already grown at least two inches. He wasn't sure if she'd be happy or pissed for the height adjustment when she returned. Her spirit would have to grow to accommodate the new changes. He knew though that her spirit would have no problem adjusting._

_He snapped to attention as a large, square object started coming into focus. Slowing to a stop, he stared at the object, his eyes wide with horror. "What the hell is this?" he whispered, stepping closer._

_The object was the largest cage he'd ever seen in his life. Hanging from its ceiling were two small swings with flowers tied around the rough ropes, like some sort of sick joke. Really, the entire thing was a sick joke. Roots crawled up the sides of the glowing silver cage, curling around the bars. The roots were studded with stiff, shiny thorns. Sitting along the bottom of the cage against small pillows and curled in soft looking blankets were children of all ages. They ranged from teens to children as young as ten. One girl sat on a swing away from the others, her knees pulled against her chest, her face buried._

_That was where he found the girl he'd been looking for, for months. Anger rolled off her in potent, visible waves, washing over the other occupants of the cage, making them shiver. They glanced warily up at her, scooting as far from her as they could possibly manage._

_The girl's brown hair had grown longer, brushing the place between her shoulder blades. Someone had pulled it back, away from her face, tying it off in a small ponytail at the base of her neck with a white satin ribbon. Her bangs had been braided and pinned back against her head with small clips shaped like wings. A white dress hung off of her frame in tatters. Scratches and bruises lined her arms. She looked like she'd seen her fair share of fights, and won most of them._

_Gene wasn't sure if she had caused the bruises and cuts herself or if they had been inflicted on her._

"_Mai," he whispered, his voice thick as he stepped up to the bars, staring up at her._

_Jerking as if she'd been asleep, Mai raised her head slowly, astonishment plastered across her face. "Gene? But… how? You shouldn't be able to get here. You shouldn't __**be**__ here," she whispered, not moving from her high perch._

"_I'm dreaming," he explained, reaching up a hand. If the thorns hadn't been blocking his way, he would have stuck his hand through the bars. "I don't know how I got in here, whoever is keeping you here probably doesn't want visitors, but I promise, I will get you out of there. You will be able to come home soon."_

_Mai's eyes darted away. She raised her head slowly, turning to stare in another direction. The kids along the bottom of the cage followed suite, staring off into the blackness. Fear curled across their faces, their muscles settling to quiver. They listened closely to something only they could hear._

_Mai turned her eyes back to Gene. For once, he could see fear in their chocolaty depths. "Gene, you have to leave now. You don't belong here. He'll catch you. You and Naru have to protect the others. And you have to protect Naru and the twins because no one else can. Please leave, now," she whispered earnestly, stretching towards him from her perch._

_Before Gene could say another word, a voice as familiar as the sun is to the moon washed over all of them. The caged children and Gene instantly stiffened, eyes going wide. 'You are not welcome here,' the voice rasped, 'Leave!'_

_Gene was roughly shoved back, rocketing through the darkness._

…..

Gene shouted out in pain as he was forcibly slammed back into Mai's body. He tensed, his body going rigid as pain rocked through him. Nausea rolled through his stomach, sending bile burning up his throat. It was all he could do not to roll over and vomit onto the carpet.

Groaning, pushing tears down, he rolled over onto his side, panting heavily. "Fuck, fuck, fuck," he whispered, grabbing the metal headboard as his muscles twisted and trembled and roiled agonizingly, trying to readjust to his presence. Bruises were already blooming across his back, upper thigh and the crook between his neck and shoulder.

Bile pushed its way back up his throat, demanding attention.

Not able to stand, barely able to move, Gene dragged himself from the bed, pulling himself to the bathroom. He leaned heavily over the toilet, heaving. He hadn't eaten since lunch the day before so only stomach acid and water made an appearance. Slumping to the floor, he curled into the fetal position, pressing his cheek against the cool tile.

Naru, yawning and completely unassuming, stumbled over the scene. He frowned as he dropped down beside his twin. "Gene, what's the matter? What happened?" he asked, tentatively probing the bruises that looked as if someone had injected ink bellow Gene's skin. "How did this happen?"

"I-" Gene paused, swallowing hard as more bile rose in his throat. He really did **not** need, nor at this moment want, to puke all over Naru. It was bad enough the he was abusing his girlfriend's body. "I was dreaming. I had a little… run-in with that douche bag, Ash."

"Daddy," Kamin began from behind Naru, startling the older twins, "What is a-"

Gene quickly reached over, covering her mouth before she could finish the question. Likewise, Naru reached over and placed his hand over Tamaki's mouth so the boy couldn't finish the question for his twin. The older twins sighed, already feeling exhaustion weighing down their bodies. "It's a word that adults use to describe someone they don't like in the least. You are not allowed to use that word, even when you're older," Gene explained, quickly removing his hand as he felt a small tongue swipe across his palm. "Ew!"

Naru jerked back his hand, wiping it quickly down his pajama bottoms. "That's gross!" he cried, shooting to his feet.

The twins were already running down the hall, disappearing into Mai and Naru's bedroom. Their demonic little laughs didn't follow them, seeming to stay right where the pair had started them.

"Gene, what the hell did you breed?" Naru asked, rubbing his hands over his face.

Gene laughed weakly, still curled on the floor, still twitching in pain. "I have no idea. Your guess is as good as mine."

Sighing, Naru glanced back to his twin, dropping down to help him into a sitting position. "Can you get up? I'm going to the office. Or do you just want to lie here and worship the porcelain god?"

"I might be able to get up in a few minutes. I'll worship at the office. I don't want to be here alone," Gene said, leaning heavily into Naru's arm. He barely caught himself on his own arm. They could both see the muscles running the length of Gene's arm slowly settling back into place. He laughed nervously. "Geez, it feels like I vigorously worked out for three hours after not having moved for three years."

"Well, I guess that's what you get for wandering around the spirit world," Naru said, standing, but still supporting his twin. "What did he do anyway?"

"Well, he-" Gene began, considering whether he should tell Naru what he'd seen or not, when he was saved by Naru's phone going off in the bedroom. They both winced as the screamer from a band Mai had introduced him to, began to sing, his voice harsh and rasping.

Naru had saved the ringtone for Ayako specifically because that was usually what he played in his head to drown her out most days. You wouldn't have thought it possible, but Naru was very much into metal and hard rock, and hid it well. On quiet days at the office or days he wanted to talk to no one, he'd plug in, turn the volume up as high as was safe for his ears, and ignore anyone that came to his door. Mai had only found out that fact in the first month of living with the man.

She'd been livid, but had also laughed her way into the sun. She'd teased him ever since.

The twin's giggling and laughing ceased abruptly. "Daddy!" Tamaki shouted from the room, waving Naru's cell out the door, "Your phone is ringing!"

Rubbing a hand against his forehead, Naru called back, "I can hear it. Answer it like I taught you to and I'll be there in a minute."

"Okay!" Tamaki called back, pulling the cell back into the room.

"Pretty sure it was a bad idea to leave them alone with your phone," Gene whispered, glancing around Naru's legs at the door.

Naru sighed. "Yeah, probably. We'll leave after you get dressed. Now, if you'll excuse me." Turning on a heel, he marched towards the bedroom, calling, "Tamaki, Kamin, time to give up my phone."

Gene tried to smile, but his face only pinched in pain, his toes curling until it felt like they would break. "This is not good. This is not good at all," he whispered to himself, trying to relax his muscles.

**Well, there you go. I hope you liked it. I'll see you all very soon for the next chapter :D**


	3. Chapter 3: Off to the Races

**Sorry for the late chapter! I didn't have much time to do anything with Christmas and the like. Hope this is a good chapter. I had fun with Yasu and Gene.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

**Just fair WARNING!: there's a lot of cursing in this one. Sorry y'all.**

Chapter 3: Off to the Races

"Hi Gene!" Yasu shouted, dropping an arm around Gene's shoulders.

He winced, smiling tightly. "Hello Yasu," he said, his shoulder throbbing where a deep purple bruise coated the crook of his neck. As gently as he could, he unwound Yasu's arm from around his shoulders, placing it at the man's side. "Let's not try to harm the she-male twin today, alright? Let's make that agreement. I'll get you ice cream at the end of the day if you don't hurt me again."

Yasu scoffed, rolling his eyes. "You think you have to bribe me to be kind?" he asked. Quickly, he added, "But the ice cream is welcome. I'll take cookie dough and bubblegum. We'll head out after we shut down the office for the night."

Gene rolled his eyes, calling out, "I'm going to go worship, Noll! I'll be out around the time the client shows up, hopefully. Or maybe not." He ran a hand over his quivering mouth as he shoved open the bathroom door and disappeared inside, slamming it shut.

"What's wrong with him?" Yasu asked, dropping down into his chair at the reception desk. He'd temporarily taken over secretary duty while Mai was indisposed.

Naru didn't answer Yasu as he dropped down onto a couch to wait for the client. They were supposed to be showing up soon after opening, and he wanted them out as quickly as possible so he could retreat to his office with his 'angry music' as Mai liked to call it. Pressing his face into his hands, he ran his hands up through his hair and back past his face, stopping with them cupped around his mouth. "Is Miss Matsuzaki going to be coming in today?"

Yasu leaned back in his chair, slowly spinning, staring up at the ceiling. "Uh, I think she will be. I believe she just finished something up on Mt. Fuji. Monk told me that she's on her way back, but he doesn't know exactly what time they'll be back, and being bored, they'll probably head this way. Why?" He looked at Naru, raising an eyebrow.

Naru glanced to the bathroom door before letting his hands cover his face again. He groaned loudly. "I need tea," he grumbled, "Gene **sucks** at making tea."

"I can hear you!" Gene called from the bathroom. He retched, and shut up.

Yasu laughed, standing as Naru stood. "I'll make it."

"No," Naru said quickly, glaring at the man, "You suck at making tea too. **I'll** make the tea."

Yasu looked offended before he dropped the charade, laughing. "Well, what about Lin? Doesn't he make good tea?"

"Relatively."

…..

"Kill me now," Gene groaned, stumbling from the bathroom. He dropped down onto the couch opposite Naru, propping his feet up on the arm of the couch, sighing loudly. "This. Fucking. SUCKS!"

"What does?" Yasu asked, stepping up between Gene's feet.

Naru was never more thankful that Gene hadn't grown accustomed to wearing Mai's skirts. Apparently, he hated them, but sometimes Naru wasn't all that sure.

"Well, you heard it for the past hour. I'd hope you'd be able to figure it out," Gene said, dropping his arm over his eyes, sighing deeply.

"Are you sick?" Yasu asked, propping his elbows up between Gene's feet.

Gene shrugged, pulling a knee towards him, leaving it in the air. "I have no idea, but I know it sucks. I hope I didn't get sick. Mai would kill me if I left her with a cold."

"Are we planning on saving Mai sometime soon?" Yasu asked, standing straight, a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. He missed his friend. He missed teasing her and Naru, and having fun with her.

Gene nodded. "I'm hoping so." His brow furrowed beneath his arm, and he sat up straight, nearly slamming his boobs into his knee. He usually forgot they were there unless he was doing an activity where they got in the way, which was often, or somehow managed to hurt them, which again, was often.

Slowly, as if he was cautious of something, he swung his legs off the edge of the couch, standing. He backed up slowly until the doorknob to Lin's office pressed into the small of his back. Slapping around for it, he flung the door opening, disappearing into the sounds of keys tapping away.

Only moments later, after Lin appeared being pushed out of his office by a frantic Gene, the bells by the door jingled. A woman stepped into the office, a soft smile curling her lips. She looked more than a little high, her black eyes dull and clouded over with mist. Her hair was short, just brushing the bottoms of her ears, and was a little frizzy. She was younger, younger than most of their clients.

"Hello," she murmured, her voice soft and lilting. "This is Shibuya Psychic Research, correct?" Her eyes turned to Naru, her eyes clouding more as they traced over him.

Naru looked away from her, his eyes twitching. '_Can no one fucking read?_' he thought sourly, '_It's right there on the damn door_.'

Looking back towards her, he stared at her blankly. "Yes, this is Shibuya Psychic Research. You are?"

"Anaga Kyoshi," the woman said, bowing deeply, "It is a pleasure to meet you Mr. Shibuya. I'm hoping that you'll be able to solve my problem for me."

Smiling welcomingly despite the way his skin was crawling, Yasu motioned towards the couch he stood in front of. "Would you like to sit down? I'll get some tea." He moved towards the kitchenette, disappearing behind the partition.

"Thank you," the woman said, smoothing down the back of her skirt as she sat down.

They were silent for a long moment as Naru and Lin got everything ready. The pair glanced at each other, nodding. "Okay, Miss Kyoshi, now, what is the problem you'd like us to look into?" Naru began, sitting back with his notebook propped open in his hand, a pencil in the other.

"Yes, of course," the woman murmured, her smile seeming to turn twisted for only a moment before relaxing again. "Well, in my home, there have been many disturbances."

Naru raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to realize that they'd need more information.

"Oh, of course," she said, pressing her hand to her cheek, smiling sheepishly. "I forgot all about saying what has been happening. Well, people have been possessed a few times, knocked around, pulled from their beds. Messages have been left on the wall and a lot of the time items are moved, or picked up while people are in the room. It's getting very frightening for all of us."

Naru narrowed his eyes, ignoring the near silent creak of the door to Lin's office opening. He didn't like the way this lady made him feel. She rubbed him the wrong way, but he couldn't say why.

Gene, walking on shaky legs like a new born faun, came up beside Naru, his eyes trained everywhere but on the woman in front of him. "Where did you say that your home was?"

"On Mt. Fuji," the woman said obligingly, smiling up at him, her eyes now trained on him. "I run an orphanage."

A shiver ran up Gene's spine, and he had to fight the need to vomit. Something was wrong with her voice, as if two people were talking at once, but it was hard to tell when she spoke so quietly. He could feel her eyes burrowing under his skin, peeling it away layer by layer. "Oh, I see." He wondered if it was a simple coincidence that Ayako would be coming back from a case up there.

"So, will you take my case?" she asked, cocking her head to the side as her smile widened.

Naru and Gene exchanged a short look. '_Do you think it's safe?_' Naru asked.

'_No, but do we really have a choice? I get the feeling that she's connected to Mai somehow_,' Gene replied, sighing inwardly.

'_Shit, alright. I didn't want to take the case, but…_' Naru inhaled deeply, pinching the bridge of his nose as a headache began to throb just behind his left eye. "We'll take the case," he said reluctantly.

"Thank you very much, sir. I hope to see you soon," the woman said, standing, "I'll leave my information with your secretary." She pulled as piece of paper from her bag, handing it to Yasu just as he was coming out with a tray. "I will see you soon then." She bowed deeply before opening the door and leaving without another word.

Yasu dropped the tray on the table, slumping onto the couch as he muttered, "Jeez, she was creepy. I never want to see her again."

Gene raised an eyebrow, staring at the tray. There were only four cups, one for each of them, and the tea was already cooling. "Yasu, you little bastard," he grumbled, "You were avoiding coming out here."

"Says the guy who was hiding in Lin's office," Yasu shot back playfully, jerking his chin towards the tall man's retreating back.

"You would have too if you were about to throw up everywhere," Gene replied smoothly.

Lin came to a stop. He glanced over his shoulder, a horrified look crawling through his dark eyes. "You didn't…"

Gene glanced at him sheepishly. "Maybe a little bit." Lin rushed into his office, letting the door slam shut.

"You didn't really vomit in there, did you?" Naru asked, face in his hands once more, "I really don't need to deal with a hysterical Lin right now."

"Of course not," Gene laughed, "You would have heard me if I had. I do not quietly vomit by any stretch of the imagination. And Lin would have screamed in agony by now."

"Lin screams?" Yasu asked, his interest piqued. He raised his eyebrows over his glasses.

Naru and Gene exchanged a glance before breaking down in loud, much needed laughter.

Yasu, his eyes going wide, jumped over the back of the couch and scuttled to his desk. He huddled in his chair, hiding behind his computer monitor. "Who are you and what have you done with the idiot twins?" he hissed.

The pair just laughed harder, bending forward against their knees.

"Why are you laughing?" Yasu whined, switching gears, "I want to laugh too!"

Gene, surprisingly, was the first to pull himself together, breathing hard. "We were laughing about what we used to do to Lin and Madoka to make them scream." They'd actually thought of the exact same moment years ago. That moment being when Madoka and Lin had been making out in the middle of the night, and Naru and he had used their abilities as weapons. Namely Naru and Gene dropping out of nowhere, thanks to Naru's PK, and taking a picture of the pair who had been utterly and fervently glued together. Yes, their screams had been beautiful.

"Tell me!" Yasu commanded.

"No," Naru replied immediately, rolling his eyes, coming out of his laughing spell. Gene started to laugh again, crouching behind the couch.

"Fine," Yasu grumbled, crossing his arms. "Hey, speaking of twins, where are the mini-twins?"

"We dropped them off with Masako and John at the church. They'll be here around noon, or sooner, hopefully," Gene answered, finally pulling himself completely together as he popped back up.

"I didn't want them here for the client," Naru said, standing, "Not with Ash roaming around. Yasu, contact the others, tell them we'll be headed out at nine o'clock sharp tomorrow morning."

"Yes sir," Yasu said, saluting Naru as the twins headed for Naru's office, bickering all the way. Halfway there, Gene turned on a heel and stumbled back to the bathroom.

…..

"Why don't we just leave right now?" Monk asked, laughing as the twins piled on top of him, giggling maniacally.

"That's a good question," John said, sitting beside Masako even as Yasu sat on her other side.

A hot blush coated the girl's cheeks, but she tried to ignore it by busying herself with her schoolwork. College had turned out to be more of a bitch than she'd expected. Now she was like Mai when they were in high school, constantly having to study and keep up with her work. "Because Naru doesn't want to go, that's why," she grumbled, breaking her pencil lead for the hundredth time since pulling it out.

"Why?" Yasu asked, leaning back, his arm thrown behind Masako's shoulders.

"We're all ready with our bags and whatnot," Ayako said, her head resting in her hand, her eyes closed. She was falling asleep. "Even the van is packed. This is the soonest and most ready we've ever been for a case."

From the bathroom, the group heard Gen dying over the porcelain god. They all stilled, wondering how he could still manage to find something to throw up. They were pretty sure that he hadn't eaten or drank anything that morning.

"Do you think he's alright?" John whispered, staring worriedly at the door, wringing his hands.

"I'll do a check-up on him later," Ayako mumbled sleepily, "I've been meaning to for a while, and I'm sure Naru would want me to also."

"Alright everyone, let's get going," Gene said, slamming his way out of the bathroom. He looked like hell, something that his bright smile and demeanor couldn't mask no matter how hard he tried.

"Oh, we're leaving now?" Yasu asked, standing and picking up Kamin, "When did that change?"

"Just now while I was dying. Naru! Let's go!" Gene shouted, slamming his palm against Naru's closed office door, "Let's stop fucking around and get going!" He frowned, glancing at the twins. "Don't repeat that."

The twins weren't even paying attention. They struggled towards Gene, reaching out their hands. When Monk and Yasu released them, they bolted to Gene, wrapping their arms around his legs. "Daddy Gene, you can't die! We don't want you to! We won't let you!" they screamed at the top of their tiny little lungs.

Gene couldn't hold back the smile that spread across his face. "Oh, I'm not going to die."

"But you said you were!" they shouted.

"That's just an expression. Don't worry, I'm not dying," Gene reassured them, kneeling and pulling them into a close hug.

"Well, I'd sure hope not," Naru said as he pulled open his office door, "I still have use of you."

"Daddy, don't be mean to Daddy Gene! He's dying!" the twins shouted irately, drawing Lin out of his office, his laptop bag slung over his shoulder.

"I'm sorry. I'll try to be nicer," Naru said, pulling them up into his arms. "Are we going or not?"

"Of course we are!" Gene shouted, bounding to his feet. "Alright, everyone, move out! Move out! The faster we get there, the faster we get this case solved!" He waved his hands towards the door, shooing the team outside.

"Gene, you need to calm down," Yasu scolded.

"Says the guy who needs to take a damn sleeping pill and mood stabilizer to be only this calm," Gene spat back, but his lips twitched up into a smirk.

**Well, there you go. Sorry for the late chapter, hope it was acceptable. I just got a really bad idea as I finished this chapter, but we'll see if I follow through with it. This will be interesting.**

**I've got a little problem though. I can't remember if Ayako was preggers in "**Hunted**" or not. I have seriously written too many Ghost Hunt fanfics where the girls get pregnant and now can't remember when I do make them pregnant or not. A little help please! :D**


	4. Chapter 4: Unconcealed Surprise

**So, I just realized that I suddenly switched to Mai and Naru calling each other fiancé/fiancée even though Naru never asked Mai to marry him, so we're just going to pretend that it was an unconscious mutual agreement thing. Or, you know, the twins had something to do with it.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

Chapter 4: Unexpected, Unconcealed Surprise

Mai wanted to cry and scream at the same time. She huddled on her swing, pulling a blanket tighter around her. Her clothes along with several of the others', had been revoked. She didn't know why. She didn't care why. All she cared about was getting out of the damn place. She hated this cage more than she'd hated her school, which was saying something.

"I need to get out of here," she whispered as she felt the stinging crawling along her cuts and the bruises that had appeared along her skin. Where did she get them? She didn't know that either.

She flinched involuntarily as the cage door was ripped open. A teen Mai had only seen a few times was flung through the door, tumbling passed the others until she slammed into the opposite side of the cage.

Mai peaked through a crack in her blanket, watching Ash as he closed the door, and watching, more closely, the locks slide into place of their own accord. She was pretty sure that they were somehow enchanted to unlock only at his presence, but she couldn't be sure until she found a way to test it out. She just knew that Ash didn't carry a key of any kind.

She remained tense, her muscles coiled for anything Ash might do, until he dissipated into the darkness of the spirit world.

"I hate him so much," she whispered, clenching her fists around the edges of her blanket.

The teen crawled up onto the swing opposite Mai. She pulled her knees up to her chest, dropping her face into them.

"What did he make you do?" Mai whispered, watching the teen.

The teen raised her head. She was maybe a few years younger than Mai, seventeen or eighteen at the youngest. She had eyes of a deep, brick red. Her hair, once a shiny black, was now dulled and fading. Three or four months prior, she had looked young and beautiful, and remarkably like Mai's boyfriend/fiancé/whatever-you-wanted-to-call-him. Her voice was now crackly, like crunching cellophane. Once, it had been the prettiest voice Mai had ever heard. "He made me possess a woman and use her to get some group to come to the orphanage."

Mai laughed bitterly. "What a joke. He must think it's funny, calling that place an orphanage. It's more like a jail."

The teen gave her a small, strained smile. "Yes, but there is nothing we can do about it."

Mai frowned, finally processing what the teen had said. "What was the name of the group you were talking about?"

"Um, I think it started with an 'S'."

Mai's blood turned to ice. "Please tell me that the group wasn't 'Shibuya Psychic Research'. Please tell me it wasn't them."

The teen's eyes widened. Slowly, her face softened with sympathy. "Yes, that was the group. I am so sorry."

Mai sighed, pushing down her tears. "Don't be. They're strong. They can overcome anything he throws at them."

"Like you?" the teen asked, smiling.

Mai didn't answer as the tears slipped down her cheeks. When Ash returned for the teen, Mai had managed to cry herself into a fitful sleep.

…..

Gene let out a squeak of surprise and fear as they pulled up to the orphanage. "Naru," he growled under his breath, eyes flashing to his twin's horrified expression. "Why didn't we even consider the possibility…" He trailed off, glancing up at the building. "We are so screwed."

"Daddy," Kamin whispered, wrapping her arms tighter around Gene's neck, "I don't like this place. It's scary."

The way Gene and Naru shivered, but tried to hide it, it truly was scary. "Yes, it is," Gene whispered, hugging her close.

"Do we have to go in there?" Tamaki asked, sitting high in Naru's arms.

"Unfortunately, yes," Naru told him, sucking in a deep breath before trudging up the steps to the doors. They pushed through the doors.

The SPR team exchanged worried looks before following the twins.

"Oh, you guys got here fast," Agana called in her subdues voice, happiness pushed somewhere between her death and her sleep. Suddenly, her soft, drugged smile turned into a snarl as her eyes landed on Rex trotting at Gene's side. "What is **that** doing here?" she snarled, her voice deepening until it just barely sounded like a woman's voice.

Gene glanced down at the albino German Shepard. He glanced up, drawing his eyebrows together. Rex growled deep in the back of her throat. "She is our nanny for the twins. See her pack?" he asked, nodding to the saddle across Rex's back carrying little odds and ends for the twins' enjoyment. He was taunting the woman. He knew, somehow, somewhere deep in his borrowed chest, that she wasn't exactly who she said that she was.

"She cannot stay here. She must go," Agana spat.

Gene shrugged. "Alright, but that means the twins, Shibuya-san, and I go. Can't leave the kiddies unattended now can we?" He smiled. '_Your move_.'

Agana gnashed her teeth. "Fine, the dog can stay," she growled, then her voice and face softened once more, "Let me show you to your base then."

Rex's growl cut off suddenly. She whimpered, somehow managing to sound confused. Her tail flicked discontentedly.

Gene glanced down at her. "Don't worry, girl," he whispered, scratching between her ears, "Everything will be fine in the end."

'_I hope_,' he thought silently, following the woman deeper into the building he'd hoped never to set foot in again, beside the boy he'd entered and left with. He couldn't help but thinking, '_We're so screwed_.'

…..

"Did you see the kids?" Gene whispered to Naru, his head in his hands. He felt the need to break down and cry. He loved Mai, he really did, but sometimes her body could be a little emotional. Usually, he could control how much Mai's body affected him, but this was not one of those times. He could feel tears pricking at the back of his eyes, making his nose tingle and his eyes sting. "They looked so terrified."

"I did," Naru muttered so only Gene could hear, his voice cold and remote. His coping mechanism had taken affect the moment they'd stepped up to the building. He wouldn't be coming back from it until this case was over and done with. "It has a different director. We need to find out what they are doing to make the children so scared."

Gene sighed. He wished they could concentrate on that, but they had a job to do. He breathing in deeply, sniffing. His nose had begun to flood in preparation for the tears. "First we have figure out what to do about the ghost, or if anything is here at all. Then we can focus our attention on the children."

"Yeah," Naru agreed, but he was far away, off in his own thoughts as he plugged a monitor into the power strip.

Sighing, Gene rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hands, glancing around the room. The others had left to scope out the orphanage and get acquainted with its many crevices and hidey-holes, taking cameras and microphones with them. Monk had taken off with Tamaki and Kamin, Rex in tow, always the warden. Ayako was the only one who had stayed behind, laid out in a corner.

Nausea slammed into Gene again. He hated the feeling, but he hadn't found the cause of it. It seemed to be nothing, but he couldn't be sure. There were so many variables that went along with possessing a soulless body that he couldn't begin to narrow them down.

He stumbled from the room and down the hall, pushing into the communal bathroom around the corner from the base. Boys and girls shared the bathrooms, learning early that they had absolutely no privacy in this place. The showers were the only things that were separate. Everything else, from the rooms to the clothes, was shared.

Pushing into one of the stalls, he closed the door before dropping to his knees. There went his lunch. Well, it wasn't like he'd eaten much to begin with.

"Gene?" Ayako's sleepy voice called through the bathroom. She rapped lightly on the stall door, murmuring, "Are you alright?"

"Yes," he muttered back, sucking in a deep breath. "I think that was the last of it for now."

"Alright, well, can you come back to the girls' room with me so I can do a check-up on you?" she asked, pushing open the door and watching him struggle to his feet silently.

Gene shrugged, taking the hand she held out to him and gripping it tightly as they started out of the bathroom. "I guess, if it'll make you feel better."

"I'm not the one that we need to put at ease," Ayako sighed, staring sadly ahead.

…..

"Okay, Gene, can you just remove your shirt and sit on the edge of the bed?" Ayako asked as she pushed open the door to the girls' room, closing it softly behind them. She wandered over to her bag, pulling out her medical bag. It was small and red, but knowing Ayako, there was about ten pounds of equipment in that bag.

Gene pulled his shirt over his head, shivering as the cold air skittered across his skin. The last time he'd taken off his shirt with a woman in the room had been when he was fifteen and in his own body. That had been the night that he'd helped create the two best things in his life. Smiling stupidly to himself, he allowed himself to travel back to that night, reliving the moment. He was snapped back to reality as Ayako pressed the cold metal of her stethoscope to his abdomen and her even colder hand against his lower back.

Hissing, he just barely managed not to recoil from her touch. "Jesus, your hands are like ice."

Ayako shrugged. "Just hold still and do as I say," she told him.

They maneuvered their way through a simple check-up, Ayako's eyebrows pulling closer together as the time ticked by. Finally, rubbing at her forehead, she muttered, "This doesn't make any sense."

"What doesn't make any sense?" Gene asked, pulling his shirt back over his head. They really needed to be getting back to Base. The others would, or at least should, be wondering where they were at that point, and he wanted to start talking to some of the kids about the happenings.

Rubbing at her forehead, Ayako asked, "I didn't think I needed to ask this question, but now I think it needs to be asked. Have you gotten your period this month?"

"Period?" Gene asked, confusion leaking into his voice, "Why would I have one of those? I'm a guy."

"In a woman's body, meaning that your body will have it whether or not you are a girl or a guy," Ayako corrected, raising an eyebrow at him. "So, I take it that you haven't."

"No, I haven't had one since I possessed Mai's body. I didn't think anything of it," Gene explained, shrugging.

Ayako's eyebrows jumped higher up on her forehead. "Oh? I guess that means that Mai was pregnant before that douche bag took her."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, back up. Are you telling me that I've been pregnant this entire time?" Gene asked, eyes wide. He thanked whatever deity or god that watched over them that he hadn't consumed any alcohol since returning.

Ayako shrugged, nodding. "Unless you've had sex with your twin or someone else in the past three months…" She trailed off at the disgusted look on Gene's face, trying not to laugh. "Didn't think so."

"Okay, okay," Gene said, rubbing his forehead as his mind tried to wrap itself around this new information, "Okay, was there anything else that I should know about?"

"Well…"

**So, sadly, I'm thinking that this will probably be my last Ghost Hunt fanfic. I've been writing them for three years now. I'll still be following the manga and creeping in the fandom, but I'm not sure if I'll be writing anymore. I've got lots planned for this story as a sort of finale. I'm going to have fun with this and try my hardest to surprise y'all.**


	5. Chapter 5: Short and Simple

**Oh my wow, are any of you Sherlock fans because… just… wow. I've been run over by so many feels over the past two new episodes, I just don't know how to cope. If any of you are a Sherlock fans, drop me a line and we can chitchat about the feels. If you aren't a Sherlock fan, still PM so we can chat. Hope y'all like this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING!**

Chapter 5: Short and Simple

"Hey, Monk, where'd you guys leave Nanari?" Yasu asked, leaning into the corner beside the window, his computer resting on his lap. Masako sat to his left, legs tossed carelessly over his while she leaned back against John's back, her classwork propped up against her legs. The priest was dozing, his head nodding as he tried to stay alert.

"With my parents over by Mount Koya. They wanted to have some quality time with their grandson or something like that, and Ayako needed a break. Plus, we didn't want to bring him on the case with what's been going on, yeah know?" Monk replied. He sat just beneath the window, a hand of solitaire laid out in front of him. Sunlight warmed his back, turning his hair a golden color.

Yasu grinned at him, still typing without looking at the screen. "No, I wouldn't know because I don't have a child, at least not one that I know of."

John snapped out of his doze, glancing at the ash haired teen over his shoulder. Masako's head shot up, her eyes narrowing. "You better not have any children. Especially ones that you don't know about. Don't go committing a Gene."

From the wall of monitors, Naru mumbled without much force behind his words, "Don't bash on my twin. He was dead."

"And I'd like to point out that he did know about them, he was just, as Naru pointed out, dead," Yasu said haughtily, pursing his lips at Masako, though there was an obvious smirk behind the face.

Monk groaned, rubbing at his forehead. "Yasu, don't be incorrigible. It's really not cute."

"Wow, that's a big word for you isn't it?" Yasu joked, grinning as Masako, John and Lin snorted with quiet laughter.

Flushing, Monk muttered, "Shut up. I know a lot of large words. I just don't use them."

Frowning, Kamin looked over at Naru. She lay on her stomach in front of Monk, watching him play. At times, she'd point to a place he could place a card, as if she was silently strategizing. "Daddy, what does 'incorrigible' mean?" she asked, looking back at Monk just in time to see him set down a card. She shook her head sadly, as if he'd already lost the game, sitting up and turning towards Naru. Tamaki lay just beside his chair, leafing through a volume of "Harry Potter".

In unison with the same monotonous tone, Naru and Tamaki replied, "It can mean 'impossible to change', or 'unruly and unmanageable'." They glanced at each other. Tamaki grinned at Naru happily.

The group went silent, falling back into their previous activities with a certain degree of sleepiness. Darkness slowly crept in at the window, a sinister eclipsing of the soft afternoon light. Naru had a feeling none of them would be getting any sleep that night. If they did, it would simply be a miracle.

As slowly as the disappearing light, the door squealed open revealing an uncomfortable looking Gene and a sympathetic Ayako. Sighing, Gene glanced up, catching Naru's eye. He jerked his chin back out the door, indicating without words that they needed to talk. He turned on his heel before anyone could say a word to him, marching back into the dark hall.

Naru was out of his chair and through the door just as quickly, worry tightening his stomach and making his body run on autopilot. Though logically, he knew Gene was residing in Mai's body for the time being and was perfectly capable of protecting himself, his body could only see Mai's face when his mind shut down, translating that into an instant need to protect.

"Wait, what's going on?" Monk asked, standing and raising his eyebrows at his wife.

Ayako shook her head. "It's not my place to say. If they want all of you to know, they'll tell you on their own time," she told the group before shutting the door firmly behind her. "We should probably go into one of the rooms as not to be eavesdropped on," she advised the twins in the hallway.

"It doesn't matter. The walls here are thin as paper. You can't sneeze without someone across the house hearing you," Naru muttered irately, crossing his arms across his chest.

Gene grinned. "Yeah, just imagine trying to masturbate in this place. That would really suck," he joked, laughing lightly, "Aren't you happy we got out of here long before a tweens and teens?"

Both Ayako and Naru groaned. "Gene, not the time."

"Sorry," Gene murmured, dropping his eyes to the hardwood floors that were stained with years of enduring the abuse of children, "I just thought we needed a joke right now."

"No. Right now, you need to explain what the problem is," Naru said, looking to Ayako sternly, "Is it bad?"

"Well…" she began, trailing off. She caught Gene's eye. "If you tell him this, I'll tell him the other thing. I don't particularly understand this situation."

Gene nodded, his shoulders sagging just the slightest bit in relief. "I can do that. I don't understand the other thing so much. So this is good. This is good. Just… let me gather my thoughts really quick." He closed his eyes, turning his back to the pair. He muttered quietly under his breath, ruffling his hair agitatedly before turning back around. "Okay, I've got it. Short and simple, that's the way to go, right?" He glanced at them. They just stared at him blankly. "Okay, so, um… yeah…"

"Just get on with it before I lose my nerve too!" Ayako shouted, jolting Gene out of his circle of procrastination.

"Mai's body is deteriorating," Gene squeaked, glaring at the offending red head. "That is not how I wanted to say it."

"That was short and sweet," Ayako countered, "Now, for the other thing-"

Naru cut her off. "What do you mean 'deteriorating'? How can her body be deteriorating?"

"My soul is not supposed to be here, Naru. This is not my body. Her body..." His eyes darted around the cavernous hall that seemed to be slowly closing in on him, searching for an answer. "It craves its original soul. It's a surprise that it hasn't ejected my soul already, but bodies have a build in mechanism that automatically fights for life. The only reason I haven't been ejected yet is because her body need something to keep it alive, I'm that something. It's biding its time until Mai's soul can return. That doesn't mean it can stand my presence though. Bodies are engineered for the soul, and the soul for the body. They aren't meant to be separated only to have something else shoved into it. It can't stand my soul, Naru, not for long periods of time like it's had to endure already."

Naru's eyes were wide, staring at his brother's scared face, his frantic eyes. "What… what does that mean?"

Gene's eyes locked on Naru. "It means that we have to get Mai back into her body soon. It hasn't started to deteriorate on the outside yet, but the moment that happens, we won't have much time left. If Mai's body, if this body," he spread a hand over his chest, "stops deteriorating before we get Mai back, then…" His throat closed with tears at the mere thought.

"Then what?" Naru asked.

The twins had completely forgotten about Ayako who was standing back in some of the darkest of the shadows, watching the exchange with wet eyes. She rubbed at her eyes with the back of her hand, trying to push back her tears. Gene had explained all of this to her before they'd come to get Naru, and they'd both started crying after he's explained the full, terrible extent of the situation.

"Then… that means the body has lost connection with the soul. It means that the soul has been destroyed."

Naru furrowed his brows, trying to find a loophole in the whole mess. "But if the soul is detached, doesn't it have a possibility of finding its body again?"

Gene shook his head, chocolate hair brushing the middle of his back and his cheekbones. "No. A body only loses connection with its soul once the body has died. If a soul is ejected from its body, the connection can only be lost of the soul is destroyed. That is when another soul can inhabit the body without worrying about rot. The body will have become an empty husk waiting for a new conductor. It may live for years after losing its soul, like a coma patient, but it will eventually die without a soul, whereas a coma patient whose soul has simply been ripped from the body will live until its natural life has been spent."

Ayako stepped forward before anymore could be said on either of the boys' parts. "Gene, darling, you just made it a little more complicated than it needed to be. Short and simple, remember?" she asked, her voice quivering with unshed emotions.

"No," Naru whispered, "I… I understand what he's talking about. We need to get Mai's soul back… as soon as we can. Short and simple."

"Short and simple," Gene agreed, rubbing at his eyes with the heels of his hands. Geez, Mai's body was seriously emotional. He didn't know if he could take much more of this anyway.

They stood in the gloom of the hallway for a long moment, each composing themselves in different ways. Finally, Naru inhaled a deep breath, pressing hands over his forehead and eyes. "What was the other thing? It better be good news."

"Well…" Ayako started slowly again, looking to Gene for help this time.

Gene sniffled, rubbing at his nose with a finger. "It depends on how you take it. It can be considered good news. Actually, it usually is taken as fantastic news by most people, but in the current situation… It can easily be taken as bad news."

"Gods, Gene," Ayako groaned, slapping her forehead, "That was the most vague explanation I've ever heard."

Gene was immediately on the defensive, puffing out his chest. "What? It's the best I could do under the conditions! You haven't told him yet!"

"Told me what yet?" Naru asked, interrupting the growing argument smoothly, looking at the pair with glacier eyes. They slid from one woman to the next, waiting impatiently for an answer.

Gene directed a glare at Ayako, narrowing his identical eyes at her. "Yeah, Ayako, what haven't told him yet?"

"It's not my fault! Don't go griping at me about your situation! I wasn't the one who did the nasty!" Ayako shouted at him.

Gene raised an eyebrow. "Actually, technically speaking, you have-"

"Gene, shut up," Ayako snarled.

"Both of you, shut up!" Naru shouted, shutting up the pair easily. He turned his glare to Ayako. "News, now, before I lose my patients."

Ayako grumbled under her breath about stupid, tyrannical bosses and idiot boy-girls before sighing loudly. "Fine, whatever. You're boy-girl twin has gotten himself pregnant."

Naru's eyes snapped to Gene, but his twin was examining his nails, lips pursed.

"Now, there's no need to go getting your panties in a twist just yet. I can safely tell you that Mai's body has been pregnant for around three or four months. We need blood tests for a more accurate time frame, but my best guess is that Mai was pregnant before Ash took her soul," Ayako explained, running a hand through her hair. "The baby is not in immediate danger from Mai's body deteriorating, but it is troubling."

Both Gene and Naru's eyes snapped to her. Gene hadn't heard this part of her little speech. "What's troubling?" they asked in unison.

Ayako frowned, looking at the pair with a raised brow. "Well, with the corrosion of her body and the switching of souls that will most definitely take place, I'm worried if the baby will be able to take the stress the body will be under."

Gene and Naru looked at each other, worry deepening the lines on both of their faces. Sighing, they said together, "Mai is strong, and so is her body. The baby will be fine."

Her eyes tightening, Ayako kept her trap shut. She didn't want to scare them. She wanted to have hope, and for them to have hope. She couldn't tell them what she really thought about everything. All she knew was that more than one heart was going to be broken over the course of this case, and not all of that heartbreak would be centered on the pair in front of her. Sighing forlornly, she turned back to Base. "Let's get back. They've probably been listening at the door this entire time, or with cups to the wall."

"Right," Naru and Gene said, equally distracted by whatever was running amok through their clever little minds.

**Whelp! There y'all go! Sorry for the late update. I've been very lazy over my vacation. Tumblr has been my best friend. Anyway, I'll try to get a new chapter up before school starts back up.**


	6. Chapter 6: Just too Smart

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt and never will**

Chapter 6: Just too Smart

"That was a very loud conversation you three were having in the hallway," Yasu commented, his eyes focused on his computer screen as Ayako, Gene and Naru pushed into Base. His fingers stilled on his keyboard. He glanced up at the trio from under his bangs, assessing the situation. The air around the three had subtlety changed over the course of the fifteen minutes they'd been gone. It wasn't exactly a good change either.

Naru shot Yasu an annoyed glare, dropping down into a chair and turning towards the monitors. "Has anything happened?" he asked Lin, ignoring the rest of the room.

Ayako dropped down beside her husband, laying her head in his lap. Her red hair slipped across his legs and only the floor like a waterfall of blood and fire. Monk sighed through his nose, setting down his already lost solitaire game and running his fingers through her hair. "Are you feeling alright?" he asked her in a quiet tone.

"It was… a heated discussion," Gene muttered wearily as he dropped down on Yasu's right side beside Monk, tossing his legs over Yasu's beside Masako's. He dropped his face into his hands as his fingertips simultaneously pressed together.

"I could hear that," Yasu said, dropping his eyes back to his computer screen. He couldn't remember what he'd been typing into the search bar. His mind couldn't focus on the virtual world. It could only focus in the legs slung across his.

Gene peeked between his fingers at Yasu, a light flush heating his cheeks. "Oh shit, you didn't **hear** what we were talking about, right?" he asked.

Yasu shook his head. "We could only hear you three when you got really loud. Like 'wake up the babies across the house' loud."

Gene frowned. "There are no babies in this orphanage."

His eyebrows drawing together, Yasu stared at Gene. "Are you sure? I thought I heard crying earlier. Don't most orphanages have at least a few babies in their care, even with all of the children and teenagers running around?"

Gene shrugged. "Sure. There's still a nursery, but this orphanage hasn't had babies in it since… well, it wasn't pretty."

"You talk like you were here when they stopped having a nursery," Yasu said. Slowly, he was starting to tape the piece together in his head, but he needed a few more before he had the entire picture.

"Um…" Gene muttered, catching Naru's eye. His twin shook his head, eyebrows furrowed. "I just have a hunch. Usually, it's not pretty when you have to stop caring for babies. Something bad usually happened." He stared off into a corner of the room, seeing something that the rest of the group wasn't privy to.

Crawling towards them, Tamaki curled into Gene's side, startling the other out of his thoughts. Gene smiled down at Tamaki, pulling him closer into his side. "Do you like the book?" he asked, pointing towards the 'Harry Potter' book still lying open on the floor. Kamin leaned over the book, flipping through the pages at a much slower pace than her twin had been.

Tamaki nodded, looking up at Gene with sparkling eyes. "I like Harry! I want to be able to do magic just like they can do!"

Gene laughed, ruffling the boy's hair. "Well, in our world we do a different kind of magic that takes a lot longer to do than their magic, but sometimes, it's more affective."

"Really?" Tamaki asked, excitement ringing in his voice.

"Of course," Gene said, "Everyone can do magic in their own way. They just have to figure out what way that is."

Tamkaki looked down at his hand, small and soft before looking back up at Gene. "Like you or Mama or Mommy?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" Gene asked, his brows furrowing in confusion. At first, he thought that maybe he meant their psychic abilities, but then he remembered that Christina hadn't had any psychic abilities.

Tamaki explained, "Making a baby."

Sharp breaths were sucked in all around the room. Naru jerked around, staring at Tamaki with a look akin to horror. Ayako's head snapped up fast enough that she could have given herself whiplash.

"Um…" Gene muttered, not knowing how to respond to the six-year-old.

"Are you pregnant, Dad? You are, right? I heard you guys talking about it," Tamaki explained further.

Gene looked up at Naru with wide, helpless eyes, searching for something, anything to tell his kid. Naru looked as lost as he did. "Well, I can't make babies, Tamaki. I'm male," he tried, but he was almost positive that the rouge wouldn't work.

"But you're in Mommy's body. That makes you a girl, right? That means you can make babies," Tamaki told Gene earnestly.

Kamin crawled towards them at warp speed, stopping at Gene's feet. "Are we going to have a brother or sister? Or maybe we'll have both!" she asked excitedly, looking at Tamaki who nodded.

"This is all your fault, Noll!" Gene shouted, glaring at his twin, "You are raising them to be too smart!"

Naru's hands shot up in defense, shaking his head. "Don't go pinning this one on me. You were the one who thought it'd be a grand idea to make children with your genes," he countered.

"You have almost the exact same genes as I do!" Gene shouted back, covering his eyes with a hand, "Trust the children to notice first. We couldn't even hide it for thirty minutes."

"The point is that they're not the same," Naru shot back before wheeling himself over and snatching up Kamin.

She struggled against his arms, laughing lightly. "Daddy, let me go," she giggled.

"Only if you promise to leave your other Daddy alone. He's not feeling well," Naru told her sternly.

She looked stricken. "Daddy Gene isn't feeling well? Is he sick?"

"No, he's making a baby like Tamaki said, but that takes a lot of energy and can sometimes make that person sick. So you have to calm down so he can rest, alright?" Naru explained calmly, ignoring the wide-eyed looks he was getting from the rest of the SPR group, "That goes for you too, Tamaki. Do you both understand?"

"Yes, Daddy," the twins said in unison.

Tamaki moved to crawl away from Gene, but was pulled back into his lap. "You don't have to avoid me. Just be quiet and calm, alright," he compromised, smiling softly.

"Okay," Tamaki whispered, kissing Gene on the cheek.

"Okay, I understand," Kamin told Naru, her eyes trained on her twin and Gene. When she was set back on the ground, she hurried over to Gene, kissed him on the cheek and sat in the crook of his arm. "I'm sorry for being loud and making you not feel good."

"Thank you, but you weren't the one who is making me feel bad," Gene told her, pulling the pair closer to his torso. He'd missed six years of this, six years of love and play and family. He wondered silently how much longer he would have with his twins. Not much longer, he knew that much.

"Um…" Monk muttered, staring between Gene and Naru with wide eyes, "That was a very quick switch, but…"

"How is Gene pregnant?" Lin asked, looking at Naru skeptically. He wasn't sure if Naru was using it as a ploy to get the twins to behave while on this case, or if it was a serious situation.

Naru sighed, rubbing his temples. "Mai was pregnant before Ash took her soul. Her body has only started to show signs of pregnancy now."

"Are you sure of that? Gene might have been showing signs this whole time," Lin replied, turning back to his computer.

Gene and Naru exchanged looks with each other and then the rest of the group. "Did he just call us stupid and unobservant?" Masako asked, narrowing her eyes at the Chinese man's back.

"Just unobservant," Lin answered, then corrected himself, "And maybe a little stupid."

…..

"Those twins that I always see your body and that black haired guy with, are they your children?" the teenager with the red eyes asked, sitting across from Mai on her swing again. It was around ten at night in the mortal world, the teen had informed her as she'd climbed back up onto her swing hours after Ash had dragged her from the cage again.

Mai looked up, immediately seeing the twins in her mind's eye. She grinned stupidly, thinking of them. "Not biologically, but they consider me their mother now. And that guy with black hair? That's not their biological father either. Is Ash going to use you again?"

The teen frowned. "Really? But they look just like him." She shook her head. "No, he's got other plans apparently. Something about none corporeal screwing around."

Mai nodded, storing the information about Ash for later use. "His identical twin is their father."

"Well, where is he then?"

Mai sighed, looking off passed the bars of the cage into the blackness of the spirit world. "He died before they were even born. He had no idea that his girlfriend was pregnant when he came over here." She sighed, rubbing at her eyes.

"Oh no, that's terrible," the teen whispered.

"Yes, but he helped me develop my abilities and for now, he's getting to spend some time with his children, until I can come back," Mai told her, smiling gently as she managed to get the swing swaying.

"How's that?"

"He's in my body." The girl gasped, pressing a hand over her mouth. Mai frowned, her eyebrows furrowing with worry. "What? What happened? Is something wrong?"

The girl shook her head quickly, a small smile pulling up the corners of her mouth. "No, nothing is wrong. It's something really, really good, but I don't know if I should ruin it for you. I don't think you know."

"What?" Mai cried, grabbing the teen's swing and pulling their faces close together, "What is it? Tell me! I need good news!"

"Your body, the one that other twin is in, it's pregnant. You're pregnant! When you get back to your body, and I know you will, you'll be expecting a child!" the girl whispered excitedly so the others below them wouldn't hear her, "Isn't that great?"

Mai's eyes were wide. She stared at the girl, her fingers still wrapped around her companion's swing ropes. "Are you sure? I'm actually pregnant?"

The girl nodded vigorously. "They were talking about it in the hallway. They said that you'd been pregnant before Ash took you."

"What? Are you sure?" The girl nodded. Slowly, Mai started to put the pieces together. "That means that… when Tamaki asked if I was pregnant… I actually was. Oh no, I lied to a child," she groaned, falling back off her swing, catching herself with her crooked legs.

The girl laughed, copying Mai and grabbing her wrists. "We're stuck here with an asshole of a master, and that's what you're worried about?"

"Well, of course that's what I'm worried about! I hate lying to them. It feels wrong. I'll have to apologize when I get back.

"You're weird," the girl giggled, swinging herself back into a sitting position.

Mai followed suit, rolling her brown eyes. "Like you aren't? I'd have to say that you're weirder than I am," she commented, pursing her lips.

"That might be true."

Carefully, Mai ventured, "How long have you been here?"

"In this cage?" the teen asked, frowning, "A couple more months than you've been here. Nearly a year now. I never gave into him. He thinks that I'm loyal now, but he's not sure. That's why he keeps me here. If you're talking about the orphanage, I've always been there. I was there when your two friends were there, and I was there after they were adopted."

"My two friends?"

"Your boyfriend and his twin, they were there from before. They were a few years older than me. They had abilities too, but they got adopted by a pair of British professors when they were seven. I've been there ever since I was a baby," the teen explained, rubbing at her arms self-consciously.

"What about your body? Is it still there?" Mai asked, hope rising in her chest. She might be able to get both of them out of there and safely back to their bodies.

The teen nodded. "Yes, but I'm almost dead. My body won't last much longer."

Suddenly, the swing slid out from under her, and Mai went plummeting towards the cage floor.

***evil laughter* So, I hinted at something in this chapter that will be very big later on in the story. If you can guess the endgame, I'll figure out a prize for y'all, but it might be buried very, very deep in this chapter. And it probably won't be the first thing you think it is. Anyway, hope you liked it. See y'all next time!**


	7. Chapter 7: Energy Repulsion

**Sorry for the late update! I forgot how tedious and time consuming school is! I have several other stories that I'm also working on, so we'll see how often I can post now. I hope it's rather frequently. Well, I hope you like this chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

Chapter 7: Energy Repulsion

"I'm going for a walk," Gene announced, getting to his feet. Night had long ago fallen, and his legs had begun to cramp with how long he'd been sitting on the floor, his legs tucked beneath him, as midnight had slowly crept passed them. "All of the children should be asleep by now, or at least, Miss Anaga should be asleep."

"And what exactly do you plan to do while all those people are sleeping?" Ayako asked sternly. She couldn't exactly tell him that he couldn't go since his nausea had finally subsided, and she couldn't stand to stop him with Kamin sleeping against her chest. "Let me remind you of the amount of stress your body is already under and that you shouldn't be putting any more stress on it."

Gene rolled his eyes like the teenager he was, just managing to keep himself from scoffing. "Ayako, really, stop worrying so much. I'm just going to go snooping around. It's not like I'm going to go out and run a marathon around the building, or like, have marathon sex or something." He laughed at the visual that popped into his head. "Gods, I need sleep," he muttered.

"Yes, you do!" Ayako cried, grabbing his comment by the horns and dragging it towards her, "You really do need sleep. Being pregnant, you need more sleep than most. Maybe you should go do that instead of exploring."

"Nah, I think I'll stick to the snooping and exploring," Gene retorted, pulling the Base door open and stepping into the hallway.

"Hold on," Naru said wanting to stand, but like Ayako, he had Tamaki sleeping against his chest, a book smashed between their stomachs.

Yasu was on his feet before Naru could even say another word, sensing somehow what the tired father had been planning on ordering. He'd been spending way too much time at the office if he could intercept Naru's thoughts. That, or he was just really good at guessing. Both were probably true. "I'll go with him. My legs are stiff," he offered, stepping around Masako who was spacing out and John who had headphones pressed into his ears, soft melodies flowing from the tiny speakers.

"Cool, let's get going then. We've got a lot of ground to cover, and at most, an hour to do so before either Ash and his freakiness or someone else notices us," Gene said, standing to the side to allowing the ash-haired man to pass him. "We'll be back sometime soon. If anything happens… You'll probably hear us before you see us," Gene said, nodding towards the bank of monitors where almost every inch of the house was being filmed except for the bathrooms, showers and most of the more or less unoccupied rooms. Even the empty nursery was being filmed. Gene had a feeling he knew why, but he wouldn't voice the theory in the presence of the others.

Naru caught Gene's eyes. '_Don't be careless. You know how this house is._'

'_I'm not stupid, Noll. I know that probably even better than you. I'll be careful. Don't worry, I won't endanger Mai's body._'

Naru's scowl deepened. '_I don't want to lose you again either, idiot_.' His thought was a snarl.

Gene simply smiled back before ushering Yasu down the hall, letting the Base door slip shut.

"That boy is even more reckless than you," Lin muttered, glancing towards Naru as his fingers slowed on their keys. "It's nice to have him back."

Naru nodded in response, not really paying attention as he attempted to pry the book out from between him and Tamaki. It wasn't working as well as he'd hoped. His hand stilled as Tamaki shifted restlessly against his chest, murmuring quietly under his breath.

"I can see why he and Mai get along so well," Lin continued, unperturbed by Naru's divided attention.

Frowning, Naru looked up at his once ago guardian. "Why do you say that?"

Lin's eyebrow rose to try and meet his hairline. "You really are oblivious aren't you?" he asked, rolling his one visible eye. Before Naru could speak, he continued. "They're the same. The same personality. Nearly all of the same gifts. If Gene wasn't possessing her body, I would have thought he'd gotten reincarnated as Mai."

Scrunching up his nose at the thought, Naru scowled at Lin. "That's disturbing to think about."

"Yes, but you can't deny the truth of it."

Naru sighed. No, no he couldn't.

…..

Mai shut her eyes tight. Only is she had wings, just tiny little wings that could catch her. She wasn't sure if her spirit could be killed from a fall, especially a fall from that height, but she sure as hell wasn't looking forward to the pain she would have to endure afterwards. The bruises she'd somehow contracted days ago still hadn't healed. They weren't even faded. Her cuts were not much better, and now she was plummeting towards the cage floor at a speed that took her breath away.

"Mai!" the teenager shouted from her perch, unable to stop Mai's decent into the group of huddled bodies beneath her.

Suddenly, her body jerked to a stop much sooner than she thought it should have to hit the floor. Carefully, she cracked her eyes open and nearly screamed anyway. She hovered a near ten feet from the cage floor. The group that had been beneath her had evacuated to stand against the walls of the cage, pressing their bodies as close to the metal as they dared to with the creeper vines and thorns still wrapped around the bars. Only one body stood beneath her, a small Hispanic boy with his arms out. "Don't scream, okay?" he told her, staring up at her. His eyes were a warm chocolate brown very similar to her own.

"What?" Mai whispered, her voice sounding terrified even to her own ears. He didn't give her time to interpret his intentions. One second she was floating, and the next she was falling again. The boy caught her easily, his arms wiry, but strong. A squeak slipped passed her lips.

"There, no harm done," the boy said, setting her on her feet. He was a little larger than she'd first thought from seeing him from above, but he was still small. Short than her, he only came up to her nose. His waist from probably three inches smaller than hers, but his chest had been hard, sinewy muscle, like a swimmer, under her hands. He stepped cautiously away from her, still holding onto her forearms to keep her steady.

Breathing hard, Mai gasped out, "Y-you have t-telekinesis."

The boy nodded. "I don't get to use it very often being stuck in here, but yeah. You're lucky I have it too. That fall could have left you crippled and vulnerable for a long time, but wouldn't have killed you. You would have been royally screwed then."

Mai nodded her agreement, rubbing at her temples. "Thank you. What… what's your name?"

The boy had curly dark brown hair that tickled at his ears and twisted against the skin of his forehead. He stared at her, narrowing his eyes for a moment. He was opening his mouth to respond when the girl on the swing swung down, landing beside Mai. "Always just in time, Desi. Thank god for you!" she cried, grabbing the boy's shoulders and kissing him on the cheek.

His cheeks flared red under his tanned skin, but the teen didn't even seem to notice. "Well, as Nat just told you, my name is Desiderio, but you can call me Desi. It's shorter and easier to say. Her name is Natalia, since I never heard her introduce herself."

"You can call me Nat," the teen said with a wide grin, flashing straight white teeth.

"Natalia… Are you Russian?" Mai asked tentatively, finally letting go of Desi's arms, standing straight.

Nat shook her head. "No, I'm English and Japanese. I guess my mother just wanted a name that was close to Natalie, but sounded better." She shrugged.

"And you're…" Mai trailed off, looking to Desi.

"Cuban mostly. I was living on the Yokota Air Force base before I ended up here," he supplied, crossing his arms over his thin chest.

Mai frowned. "Did he approach you before you came here?"

Desi nodded. "He approached all of us before he added us to his collection, but you… He's very invested in you. I have never seen him try so hard to capture someone before. It's odd. Jealousy of that group of hers?" The question was directed at Nat who pursed her lips.

"Possibly. Maybe she is just more unique than the rest of us. You know how he loves the especially unique ones," Nat said, her red eyes skimming over Mai with a critical eye, like she could decipher exactly what made Ash pine for her just by looking over her person.

Mai didn't think it was that simple. "Um, I'm right here. Please don't talk about me like I'm not…" Her words trailed off as she caught a flicker of movement out of the corner of her eye. Slowly, horror seeping into the deepest core of her being, she turned her eyes to the movement, hoping against all hope that it wasn't what she thought. Her heart stopped in her chest as they slid over the one person she'd hoped never to see in this place.

"Mommy," Tamaki whispered, peering through the bars at her. Glancing up at the creeper vines and thorns, he reached out a curious finger, running it along the green flesh of the plant. The vine instantly shrank away from his touch, making space on the bars for him. "Mommy," he called again quietly.

Mai rushed for the bars, skinning her knees on the metal cage floor as she slid to a halt in front of him. "Oh my god, Tamaki, Tamaki, it's been so long," she whispered, tears choking her throat as she pushed her hands through the bars, running them along his cheeks and through his hair. The realization of their situation hit her like a train, and all of her joy at seeing on of her children again was eclipsed. "Tamaki, you can't be here. It's very dangerous here. You can't be caught here," she whispered frantically, but she couldn't let go of him. She wished that she could pull him against her chest, feel his warmth for the first time in three months.

"Mommy, why are you in that cage? You have bruises like Daddy Gene has. And cuts. Are you hurt?" he asked, completely ignoring what she was telling him.

Mai shook her head quickly. "No, sweetie, not badly. You have to go though, right now. You can't be here any longer." The vines were already creeping back towards them, and she wasn't sure if they would be scared away by Tamaki's energy again.

"But Mommy, Daddy needs you. He's really sad. Can't you get out of this cage?" he asked, resting his hands on the razor-bladed edge of the cage, but nothing seemed to happen to him.

"I know, I know, I've very sad too, but I can't get out. Not yet. Don't worry. I'll be back soon, but right now, you have to wake up. You have to wake up, Tamaki," Mai whispered, clutching his shoulders.

"But-"

Mai cut him off. "No, buts. Wake up, now. Wake up." She paused, her brain working feverishly to come up with a valid reason for the boy to wake. "I have a job that only you can do."

Tamaki's eyes sparkled. "Really?"

"Yes, but you have to promise to do it right now. It can't wait." Tamaki nodded his understanding. "You're going to have to wake up. When you wake up, tell Daddy what happened in your dream, alright? Then I need you to tell Daddy Gene that I think a connected soul with enough energy is the only way to open the cage. He'll understand what I'm talking about. Do you have it?" she told him quickly, glancing around the black void.

Tamaki nodded, his face going serious. "Yes, I've got it, Mommy."

"Okay, now run. Run and wake up. Go. Now." She pulled him close enough to the bars to press a kiss to his forehead. "I love you, and I love Daddy, and I love Kamin. Tell everyone that I love and miss them, and don't forget your job. Now, go. As fast as you can."

Without another word, Tamaki turned and sprinted away into the darkness, leaving Mai to jerk away from the bars as the creeper vines dropped down once more. She stared after him longingly, ignoring the whispers of the others around her. She needed to get out of here, and she was going to do it with or without help.

**There you go. Hope it was good enough. Next chapter will have to do specifically with where Gene and Yasu disappeared to, and maybe a little more Naru/Gene back story and whatnot. See you next time!**


	8. Chapter 8: Listen Here

**I just realized, I forgot about Rex… again. So, we're getting some Rex time in this one, and she's going to be a little pushy in the next chapter probably. Hope you like it, and her. See you at the end!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

Chapter 8: Listen Here

"So, where are you planning on taking me, maestro?" Yasu asked lightly as they tromped down the corridor away from Base, falling deeper and deeper into the darkness that always seemed to encompass the orphanage, as if the sun had never learned to shine there.

"I don't know…" Gene murmured, trailing off as he stopped at a T in the hallway. Peaking around the corner, he glanced right then left. He chose left, heading deeper into the bowels of the house and further from the doors that would spill them into the blessed night air. "We're going to the children's sleeping quarters," Gene announced. He figured that Miss Anaga's, or Ash's, or whoever-was-actually-running-this-place's, room would be closer to the door to deter any excursions into the greater beyond. That left the back of the house for the children to populate. At least, that's how he remembered it to be.

Yasu frowned, following after him, glancing over his shoulder down the opposite hall. In the gloom, he saw a pair of green and brown swirled eyes staring after them. Jolting with surprise, he blinked rapidly. The eyes disappeared. '_I need sleep too_,' he thought, cautiously turning his eyes back forward. He could still feel those eyes boring a hole into his back. He decided that it'd be best to mention that fact later. If Gene didn't feel like he was being watched, then he was probably just tired and beginning to hallucinate. Yeah, that was it.

"Why are you so sure that the orphans' rooms are this way?" he asked just a tad bit suspiciously. Gene and Naru knew a surprising amount about this orphanage in particular. He would have attributed it to their living in an orphanage for a number of years, but they seemed too familiar with the house, like they were returning to a not so good friend. He trailed after Gene, watching his, or rather Mai's, hair swish back and forth between his shoulder blades. It was hypnotizing. He almost missed Gene's reply.

"I… looked at a… layout plan… of the house," Gene said haltingly. It seemed to take a great deal to come up with this lie. And it was a lie. They could both tell. Neither commented.

Instead, Yasu asked, "Is the nursery back this way too?" They turned right around another corner. To their left was a set of double glass paned doors. To their right was another set of bathrooms. The door, large and wooden, was ajar. The clean scent of lemons wafted out, but that didn't mask the other smell. The hallway smelled like a dead skunk left to rot in the middle of the road. "Jesus," Yasu muttered, pulling his shirt up over his nose.

"No," Gene coughed, pressing a hand over his nose and mouth, "It's down that way." He pointed off down the hall into the gloom.

"Well, that's reassuring," Yasu muttered sarcastically, "I don't feel like I'm going to get murdered or something just standing here."

Even as the words left his mouth, there was a quiet click against the hardwood floors. They stiffened, turning their eyes to the darkness of the hall stretching ahead of them past the children's room. Slowly, a white ghost materialized out of the darkness.

"Oh my god, what is that?" Yasu whispered, stepping closer to Gene, just in front of him.

Gene stared at the approaching ghost for another moment before rolling his eyes. "I don't know. Maybe it's a dog," Gene said sarcastically as Rex appeared out of the gloom, her tail wagging slowly and her tongue lolling out. She trotted up to his side, licking his hand fingertips to wrist. "Rex, that was so gross," he muttered, wiping his hand on Yasu's pants.

"Why on my pants?" Yasu sighed, rubbing at the wet spot.

"Because they were there and I didn't want to put slobber on my skirt."

"You sound like a chick."

"Technically speaking, I am a chick."

Rex huffed in exasperation, rolling her eyes. Padding towards the door, she scratched at the wood. The panes of the door were covered in dry erase markers and sharpie. The inside of the door seemed to be littered with papers tapped and glued to the wooden surface. She looked back at them before whining quietly.

Glancing down at her, Gene and Yasu turned their eyes to the door. "You want us to go in there, girl?" Yasu asked, placing a hand on a shiny silver doorknob. He looked to Gene. "Think we should go in?"

"Might as well, we have nowhere else to go for now," Gene said, grabbing Yasu's hand around the doorknob and turning it. He pushed open the door, ignoring the way that Yasu's hand tightened under his, tendons standing out his skin. "God, is smells like a high school locker room."

"Geez, what kind of locker rooms have you been in?" Yasu laughed, his voice quiet as they slipped into the room, "If I remember correctly, ours smelled like angst and teenage depression."

Soft flares of orange-ish light lit a far corner of the room every few seconds, glinting off the glass of the window. Many of the beds were filled with small children sleeping, or at least trying to sleep. Some just stared at the walls, kept awake by the smell and the creaking of the floors.

"England's locker rooms," Gene muttered, coaxing a louder laugh from Yasu.

Yasu pressed his hand to his mouth, glancing around at the beds of children and the beds missing children. He didn't seem to have woken any of them, but he also hadn't helped any of the others fall to sleep.

They rounded the last bed, frowning as they came upon a small group made up of both girls and guys sitting in a circle. They passed a homemade bong between each other, taking deep breaths of the smoke rising up through a tube. They didn't seem to have noticed the pair standing behind them.

"Uh… what are you kids doing?" Gene asked slowly, pressing his shirt over his face. "Jesus, that smells horrible. Are you smoking pot?"

The teens turned towards the pair, looking up at them with dopey eyed high expressions. "Ooooooh, you're those ghost people aren't you?" a boy across the circle from them asked, voice slow and thick.

"Yes. Why are you smoking pot with young children around?" Gene asked, more annoyed and indignant than he thought he should be, but that didn't change the fact that he was. "Why are you smoking pot at all?"

The boy shrugged. "Dunno. Something to do. Keeps the ghost away."

Gene couldn't tell if the boy was being serious or not. He had never been well versed in the stupidity of teenagers, and since he'd been dead, he seemed to be even less literate in their language. He wanted to hit the boy for being vague and not actually answering his question. "Put it out. Now," he instructed, glaring poison tipped daggers at the teen.

Quickly, the girl to his immediate left extinguished the flame she'd been lifting towards the pipe. The boy snatched the pipe from her hands, staring defiantly at Gene as he lit up, smoke travelling up the tube to his waiting lips. He inhaled the smoked, holding it in his lungs for a long moment before blowing it towards Gene.

Yasu gently pushed Gene out of the path of the smoke, grabbing the pipe from the teen, and glaring at him. He dropped the pipe on a bedside table as he said, "I wouldn't do that if I were you. Neither of us is very tolerant of drugs, and she's pregnant, so I'm even less tolerant."

Several of the more sober teens' eyes widened. "Oh shit, she's pregnant," one kid blurted out.

"Open a window or something," a girl said to the boy, scrambling to her feet. The pair quickly pushed open every available window, allowing the cool night breeze to sweep through the room, clearing out the pent up smoke rather quickly.

The teen still glaring at Yasu and Gene rolled his eyes. "I don't know why you guys are here anyway. One, you're all phonies. Two, you aren't going to be able to fix our problem anyway, so you might as well clear out before something happens."

Gene's eyes narrowed. "Did you just threaten us?" he growled, anger flaring in the pit of his stomach.

"Not a threat, just a fact of what'll happen if you hang around," the boy said with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"What do you mean? Why won't we be able to solve your problem?" Gene asked, choosing to redirect the conversation before he burst a vein. This kid wasn't making his life any easier by being a little shit.

"You're all just too incompetent. Like I said before, you're a bunch of phonies," the teen said, leaning back against the wall with the most bored expression he could muster. With his eyes blood shot from the smoke, he just looked like he'd been crying.

Grinding his teeth, Gene finally gave in to the aggravation. With a chunk of Naru's personality fueling his actions, he stepped between two of the teens into the middle of the circle. Without even a simple grunt, he hauled the boy up by his collar, slamming him high up against the wall. "Look here, you little shit," he snarled, "You can think whatever you like about us, but the point is, we're trying to help you. You being a douche bag is not going to solve anything. If you don't shut your fucking trap, I'm going to shut it for you, and you are not going to like how I do it. So, you have two options. You either tell us what we want to know so we can help, or you shut up and let your brothers and sisters talk." He released the boy's collar, letting him slide to the ground with wide eyes. "My twin and I were once foster kids too, in this very house as a matter of fact. We learned quickly that acting the way you are acting would never get us anywhere. We got out of this hellhole because we learned to play the game. You better learn to play it soon or you'll never leave."

Silence permeated the room. Yasu was giddy with satisfaction, grinning triumphantly. He hadn't caught on to the end of the spiel, but he didn't care. All he cared about was the fact that the teen looked like he'd wet himself, and the other teens who had been part of the circle were pressed as far away from Gene as they could get.

The other kids stared at Gene with wide, astonished, and admiring eyes. Cautiously, they slid from their beds and came to stand at the end of the room with the rest. "You're not really a lady are you?" a brave young boy asked, looking up at Gene.

Gene, tearing his eyes away from the shell shocked teen, looked down at the little boy. "What do you mean?"

"Like, you're soul isn't a lady is it? Your soul is a sir like him." He pointed to Yasu, never removing his eyes from Gene's dark blues.

"How can you tell that?" Gene asked, not confirming or denying the child's claim.

The boy frowned at his feet. "I don't know. Ash said that I had a special power that normal people don't have." He glanced back up at Gene. "Are you special like me?"

Gene smiled softly. "I don't think I'm special in the same way that you are, but yes, I am special."

"Yeah, special ed," the teen who he'd slammed against the wall muttered.

"Did you say something?" Gene shot at the teen. He shook his head quickly. "That's what I thought." He turned back to the little boy, smiling widely. "Is there anything you could tell us that could help us help all of you?"

The boy's smile fell. He looked around at the others who all had similar expressions to him, even the teens still sitting on the floor. "There might be something," he murmured, glancing cautiously over his shoulder at the door. He pulled Gene down to his level and whispered into his ear, "There are dead people in the attic."

Gene jerked back in shock, staring around at the faces of all the orphans. They were all starting to look a little terrified.

"We're not allowed up there, but we all know what Ash is hiding," the teen against the wall muttered, staring at the floor between his feet.

Before one of the others could speak another word, Rex stuck her nose in the little boy's palm, licking at his wrist. The boy giggled, and the tension dissolved into laughter.

"We'll go check out the attic," Gene said, ruffling the boy's hair as he headed toward the door, "In the meantime, I advise that you learn to clean up your act and stop with that." He pointed at the teen against the wall, circling around him and the bong still sitting on the bedside table. The teen nodded, his eyes still wide. "Good, we'll see you all soon."

Gene and Yasu slipped back through the double doors, Rex trotting behind them.

**Well, there you go. The next chapter should be the end of Gene's and Yasu's excursion outside Base, and Tamaki waking up. I know some of you wanted to read that. See y'all soon!**


	9. Chapter 9: Finding the Near Dead

**I am writing this at almost midnight with a raging case of pre-period cramps and I have school tomorrow. I hope you all love me for this. I also hope that you enjoy that chappy!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

Chapter 9: Finding the Near Dead

"Holy wow," Yasu muttered, staring in through the cracked door of the attic, "That kid was seriously not kidding. I don't know if I should be amazed, horrified, both or something else entirely." He was blocking the way into the room with his body, effectively cutting off Gene's view into the room seeing as he was at least half a head shorter than Yasu in Mai's body.

Grumbling, Gene pushed on Yasu's side. "Hey, genius, you know your mom didn't have sex with a window to make you, right? Move over," he said, muscling his way passed the other boy with a hard roll of his eyes. "What are you even talking about?" His words trailed off into oblivion as he understood.

The attic was easily the largest room in the entire house. With high, sloping ceilings and floors that spanned the entire layout of the house without a single wall made it even larger. Rows upon rows of beds had been set up, running from the wall where they stood all the way to the end of the room by the window that had been nailed shut for reasons unknown to the pair. The rows were three beds deep, pressed so close that only a thin person would be able to squeeze between them. At the side of each bed, a simply IV drip was attached to the left arm of each sleeping body. Every bed was filled with an eerily comatose patient.

"I can see why the kids thought the room was filled with the dead," Gene muttered, tentatively taking the first step into the wide, seemingly crowded space. Nausea slowly crept up his throat, but he ignored it, focusing on the issue at hand. "How did he… find so many of us?" he murmured.

"This is some set up he's got here," Yasu said, whistling under his breath as he wandered over to the window, glancing out of it down into the closely surrounding forest. "Is there any reason we should be worried about our isolation?"

"There wasn't until you mentioned it!" Gene snapped, skirting passed the sleeping children to the window. Standing to the side of the glass, he peered out into the forest. "Unless one of these children has the power to manipulate plants or something, which they shouldn't because that is totally not a psychic or even real ability, then there shouldn't be a problem with the forest. The isolation on the other hand, we do have a problem with. I didn't realize how close the trees were though."

A shadow flashed between the trunks of the trees. It was only a millisecond, but he saw it, that slight shift in the shadows from lighter to darker and back to the lighter grey when a body passes through them. "Shit," he gasped, jerking away from the window. He jerked Yasu to his knees in front of him, below the windowsill. "Shit. Shit. Shit. I think someone saw us."

Turning to consider what the next best thing would be to do, his eyes drifted down to where Yasu was. On his knees, the top of Yasu's head came up to his waist, and he couldn't help the comment that snaked up his throat. "You look good on your knees."

Yasu smirked up at him, lenses flashing with the light of the stars. "Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?"

Pushing Yasu away in mock disgust, he shot back, "Don't push your gender roles onto me. I don't get on my knees for anyone." His threw his nose high and haughtily into the air, crossing his arms over his chest. Had his, or Mai's, or whoever's, breasts gotten fuller? No. Definitely not. He was just imagining the wider spread of his arms.

Shaking the thoughts out of his head, he tried to focus on the problem at hand and keeping his nausea tamped down enough for them to investigate and get back downstairs.

His laugh cutting off halfway through, Yasu gulped audibly. "I think… gender roles are the least of our problems right now," his whispered.

"What are you talking about?" Gene asked, lowering his eyes. Before they could reach Yasu, they snagged on what had caused his friend's distress.

Where the beds had been filled wtih motionless bodies, they were empty. Beside them stood their occupants, heads dipped, eyes closed, hands clasped around their IV stands. They stood as motionless as they had lain, turned towards the pair.

"Yasu, get up," Gene whispered, grabbing for Yasu's sleeve. "Now. Get up. Get behind me. Stay behind me. When I move, move. When I stop, stop. No matter what, don't get in front of me." Cautiously, he slid his foot forward, watching the occupants' reactions carefully.

They stayed as they were, silently watching their movements.

'_Please, don't let me get Yasu killed and ruin Mai's chance to be with Naru again_,' Gene prayed silently, shuffling forward at a snail's pace. Forcibly shoving aside his growing nausea, he drew on Naru's power, trying to channel it as Naru was able to. When they were younger, they'd found that if they concentrated hard enough, they could use the other's abilities. Not to the other's capabilities or standards, but enough that if they really needed it, they could use it for defense. '_Please work_,' he mind whispered unbidden. He tried not to think of all of the repercussions he'd be putting his temporary host through.

As if responding to his plea, the air around his palms began sparking with that barely contained energy. It wasn't as widespread as Naru's, but it was enough to give him hope. He didn't want to kill any of the unsuspecting victim's, but merely incapacitate them. A short, Taser-like shock would do perfectly fine, which would be all he'd be able to produce most likely.

Breathing out an energy laden breath, he blew the energy into a shield that would surround the two of them, deflecting any psychic attacks. Physical attacks were a different story though. Just then, he was happy that they'd sent Rex to go back to Base before coming up.

They were just reaching the door when the first patient moved, turning to stare at them, eyes flashing open. It was a girl with long, silky black and features more familiar than he cared to admit. Every other patient followed suit. All of their eyes were the same color, emerald green with brown. Slowly, patiently, they pulled their IVs from their arms, and lunged.

…..

Naru felt the energy drain long before he knew what was happening several stories above his head. It was a curious sort of drain, not the kind you get from working out or going to school or interacting with idiots. It was a different kind of feeling than even exhaustion. It was at least ten times worse. It sucked at the marrow of his bones, stealing energy from every cell in his body. It pulled at the air held in his lungs, making it hard to breathe, especially with a six-year-old boy sleeping restlessly on his chest. If he'd attempted to stand at that moment, he would have surely dropped to the floor, legs crumpling beneath him. Leaning his head back against the edge of his chair, he groaned quietly.

"What's the matter?" Lin asked, frowning in his direction. His fingers slowed to only a few taps a second.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Naru shook his head. He was sure he knew the feeling, but he couldn't name it, couldn't pinpoint where he'd felt it before. If he could name it, he could tell Lin, they could fix it. That was the problem with almost remember something, it danced just out of reach, tantalizing but uncatchable.

Grumbling, Tamaki shifted against Naru's chest again, tightening his fists on the shoulders of Naru's black button-up, wrinkling the ironed fabric. "Mommy," he whispered, rubbing his eyes against Naru's shoulder.

Sighing, Naru wrapped his jelly arms around the boy, rubbing circles into his back comfortingly. Even that was taxing, pulling at the dregs of what was left of his body. All he could do from that point was melt into a puddle of goo on the floor or pass out with his son. Neither seemed very appealing.

"Noll, are you sure you are alright?" Lin asked with concern, turning away from his computer altogether to look over the pair.

Naru couldn't even find enough energy to give his trademark single-syllable response. In the next moment, he didn't have to because it was obvious that he wasn't okay.

In his lap, Tamaki jerked awake, slamming his knee into Naru's groin with the force of a horse kicking back. As Naru bucked forward with a higher-than-natural groan, Tamaki toppled sideways. "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy, I have something to tell you!" he cried as he shot to his feet, navy eyes wide. Stopping in his haste, he cocked his head to the side, staring at Naru. "Daddy, what's the matter? Are you hurt?"

Trying not to laugh, and choosing instead to flinch, Monk waved Tamaki over while Naru made a valiant attempt not to cry. "You could say that your dad is hurt. You should probably let him alone while the pain wears off," Monk said, ruffling the boy's hair, "Now, what is it that you need to tell your dad?"

"I talked to Mommy!" Tamaki said excitedly.

As if they'd all suddenly downed a number of energy drinks, the entire group was wide-eyed and awake, except for the incapacitated Naru, staring at the child expectantly. Kamin watched him jealously, muttering, "I want to see Mommy."

Tamaki shook his head quickly. "Mommy doesn't want us where she is. She said that we will get hurt if we go there. She told me I had to tell Daddy and Daddy Gene what happened in my dream."

"Well, you can tell Ayako, Lin, Masako, John and me, and then we can all tell your dads. So, can you tell us what happened?" Monk asked coaxingly, smiling reassuringly.

Nodding, Tamaki relayed the entire story to them, including the part where he'd felt something, or someone bad, while running to wake up. When he was done, he stared down at his feet. "We're going to be able to get Mommy out of that cage, right? She won't have to be there for much longer, right?" he asked, taking Kamin's hand when she offered it to him.

Glancing between the bewildered expressions of the others, Monk sighed and nodded. "Of course. We're going to get your mom back really soon, and then everything will be fine again," Monk told him.

"Okay," Tamaki murmured. Kamin stood as he went quiet, pulling him away from the group to a blanket she'd left in a corner. They crawled beneath it, whispering between each other.

Sighing, the group turned to Naru who had finally straightened from the pain only to rest his elbows on his knees. "So, Naru, what are we going to do? We know you were listening," Monk asked, sitting back against the wall.

"Of course I was listening," Naru mumbled tiredly, his voice fading quickly, "I need to talk to Gene before…"

Several things happened all at once after that. Naru slumped forward into a heap on the floor. Rex began scratching and barking viciously at the outside of the door. And a high, piercing, familiar scream rang through the air.

**So, it's been a week since I posted last, and I feel bad about that, but school is such a bitch. I might only have 2 academic classes and then 2 musical classes, but it's still a bear. Once I get back into the flow of things, and pull my head out of the sand, things should run more smoothly. See you next time!**


	10. Chapter 10: Catch of Breath

**Oh my god, you guys don't know how much this chapter hurt me until the end. My poor babies. Hope this hurts you as much as it hurt me, then I won't be forever alone.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ghost Hunt!**

Chapter 10: Catch of Breath

Gene just managed not pass out after he released a tremendous burst of energy, his scream ringing through the house. The shield he'd created around Yasu and him pushed out. Patients flying towards them ricocheted off the wall, others were pushed down, and yet others were flung back by the shot of energy Gene had released. The air crackled with the sparky residue, making their hair stand on end.

"That was so uncouth!" Gene said, slipping to the floor, hand clutching at Yasu's arm. His eyelids drooped low, his breath coming fast. "How does Mai do it all the time? Gods, I think I gave myself asthma."

"You can't give yourself asthma from screaming. Actually, you can't give yourself asthma, period," Yasu told Gene, wedging his hands under his arms and pulling Gene back up. "Hey, come on. Don't pass out on me. There's still a ton of them left." Even as he said the words, he hoisted Gene into his arms and rushed through the door. He kicked the door shut behind them.

"I am… an English… lady," Gene breathed hard, not even wasting the energy to glare at Yasu, "I do not… pass out. I… faint."

"Great, now he's talking gibberish," Yasu muttered to himself, tapping down the stairs as quickly as he dared. Just then, the door above them crashed open, ripped off its hinges. It slammed into the opposing wall before tumbling down the stairs. "Dammit. Dammit. Dammit," he muttered, pressing Gene into the wall, his back to the falling door, "Hey, you do know you're a guy, right? That would make you a gentleman." It fell harmlessly past them. He was trying to keep Gene awake and talking, but so far, it wasn't working.

Gene's eyes had almost completely closed, and his body was limp in Yasu's arms. He murmured to himself, slowly slipping ever further beneath the black veil of unconsciousness. "I'm going to puke," he groaned, but made no move to cover his stomach or mouth.

"Don't puke on me," Yasu protested, glancing back up the stairs as he pulled away from the wall.

The patients were flooding through the door, pushing and shoving each other out of the way to get through faster. The stairway was quickly becoming congested with half-dead humans.

That may have been their only chance to leave before they converged on them. "Ooooookay," Yasu said, drawing out the word, "I think it's time we get out of here." Turning swiftly, he ran down the stairs, jumping two or three at a time, not paying attention to the jarring pain that raced up his ankle when he hit the bottom step and a piece of door slid from beneath his foot. Regaining his balance and straightening his ankle, they spilled out into the second floor hallway. Kicking the door shut, he turned and ran towards another set of stairs. He was starting to hate stairs.

"Hey, hey, Gene, you know what happened, don't you?" he asked. His friend was drifting fast, and he didn't know what would happen if and when he finally did.

Gene's eyelids fluttered open, and he stared up at Yasu with his unfocussed navy blue eyes. "I don't know what happened. What happened?" His face was unguarded and childish. Just like Naru, he kept up a front, but surprisingly, his twin let his slip more often than Gene ever did.

"Masako and I broke up," Yasu told him, holding him close against his body as he shoved into the next stairwell and slammed the door shut with his shoulder.

"Why? I thought… you and Masako… liked each other," Gene said slowly, voice dropping in volume. His pulled his arms up from dangling, crossing them loosely over his stomach. He played idly with Yasu's shirt, tracing patterns over his stomach.

Yasu's muscles clenched beneath Gene's fingers, quivering and jerking away from his touch. "We did. We still do, but more as friends."

"Why did you break up? You two were so…" He paused longer than necessary, slipping his fingers beneath Yasu's shirt and pressing them to the warm flesh beneath. Yasu sucked in a sharp breath. "…cute together."

Yasu laughed breathily, watching where his feet landed on the steps. "I guess you could say that. It was fun while it lasted, but it was really only dating. For some reason, people expect when two persons get together that have been in a group for a long time, it will work out for the long run, but no one ever talks about what happens after the fairytale ends." They reached the bottom of the stairs. He continued talking as he cautiously poked his heads out the door, glancing down the hallway. "We're still friends, but some things happened, and we decided that it'd be best not to continue our 'relationship'." He said 'relationship' as if it promised nothing but bitterness and lies.

"Why does she still hang all over you then? It's as if you, John, and Masako are inseparable," Gene muttered, his words just the slightest bit jumbled, but jealousy simmered just below the surface.

Yasu pursed his lips, quietly closing the door behind him. He didn't hear those half-dead patients, but that didn't mean they weren't close behind. "Those two are. We, the three of us, have a sort of mutually beneficial relationship for the time being, though I haven't taken advantage of it in a rather long time."

Gene laughed, retracting his fingers from under Yasu's shirt to hook in his belt loop. "You guys are fuck buddies."

"Well, my part of the group is. They… they're together. Behind my back mind you, but it doesn't really matter to me." Yasu glanced down the hallway. He couldn't remember which direction they'd come from. Was the children's room to his right or his left? He wouldn't want to lead the patients toward them, but it was the only way he knew to get back to Base. Grumbling to himself, he turned and lopped off to the right.

Gene laughed again, quieter than before. "If it didn't still matter to you, you wouldn't have even mentioned it."

"Gene, you might want to shut up. I might drop you otherwise," Yasu warned.

Gene's body shook, which he assumed was just his friend laughing more. They were just coming onto the double doors of the children's room when Gene's body went still. The children were out of their beds, huddled together in the back of the room. The teen Gene had shoved against the wall stood slowly, his hands held out and expression determined, then he realized who was standing outside. The teen rushed towards the doors.

That's when Yasu realized that Gene's body was completely still, not the still of sleeping, but the still of not breathing.

…..

"That was Gene!" Monk shouted, rushing for the door. He jerked it open, and Rex rushed in, her eyes wide, ears pressed against her skull, tail puffed up to twice its size. "Rex! Where are Gene and Yasu?"

Rex, of course not answering, rushed into Base. She sniffed around the twins before tentatively licking Naru's face and whining.

"I have to… get to Gene," Naru groaned, struggling to pull himself up. His arms slipped out from under him and he crashed to the floor, but he grabbed the edge of the table and tried again.

"Naru, you're too weak," Lin said, helping Naru to his feet, "You can't help him like this. We'll go help him. You stay here with the twins."

"No," Naru snarled, his eyesight fuzzy as he glared at Lin. A headache pounded against the inside of his skull like he hadn't drunk water for three whole days. "You don't understand. He borrowed from me, Lin. He's in a lot of trouble. I **have** to help him."

"You can't," Ayako said flatly, drawing everyone's attention to her. "You're too weak, Naru. If anything, you'll get in the way of us helping him and Yasu. Stay here with the twins and Masako. The rest of us will go get those two dimwits back. No arguing, from any of you." She glowered at each of them in turn, before marching towards the door. "We're wasting time. We need to get up there now." With those last words, she was gone in a flash of red hair and swirling skirts.

Looking back at Naru, Monk shrugged and followed after her. John, throwing an apologetic smile over his shoulder, rushed after them. Releasing Naru's arm into Masako's grasp, Lin was the last to leave the room.

"What do you feel, Masako?" Naru asked. Darkness encroached on the edges of his vision, turning the mist to a dark shade of grey.

Closing her eyes, Masako concentrated on the house. She reached up, up, up towards the top levels of the house, where they'd heard Gene's scream come from. She passed two bodily bound souls, souls she knew all too well. They were coming down to the first floor. She reached up farther, and found what she was looking for. Still trying to force all of the bodies through the stairway, a spirit was connected to all of the victims. It looked as if the spirit had small glowing tendrils snaked into the backs of each of the bodies' necks. Behind the spirit was another, one she also knew too well.

Her stomach fell through the floor. "Oh god," she whispered, her eyes snapping open, "Naru, we have to get to Gene and Yasu. I think the others already ran past them. We have to get them, and Yasu, and Gene. Now. Did Monk ward the base?"

Naru shook his head, narrowing his eyes at the pain. "No, I don't think so."

"Cellphone. Cellphone," Masako muttered, staring around the room. She hadn't brought hers, she never did on a case so her agent couldn't reach her.

"Here!" Kamin shouted even as Tamaki held a phone out to her, "Its Daddy's phone!"

"Let's go!" Masako shouted, grabbing Naru's arm and dragging him from the room as she speed dialed Lin. "Stay close behind me!" she shouted at the twins who were riding on Rex, clutching at her coat. She spoke quickly, concisely, hanging up before Lin could say anything or ask questions.

They didn't have to run far. The pair had made it down to the first floor by then. Yasu was leaned over Gene.

"Why are you… kissing my brother in my fiancée's body?" Naru asked, steel in his tired voice.

Yasu's head popped up, panic in his eyes. "Naru, he won't wake up! Gene stopped breathing and now he won't wake up!" he grunted, frantically returning to doing chest compressions like he'd been taught in his CPR course. Thirty compressions, hand on forehead, tilt chin up, breath into mouth. "Wake up, Gene. Wake up!"

Stumbling, Naru jerked away from Masako and fell to the floor on Gene's other side. "Let me take over the compressions."

"Naru, you're too weak!" Masako protested, grabbing at his shoulder, but he shrugged her off. She took a step back, clenching her fists so her nails bit into her palms, watching her friends silently. Naru found renewed strength as he pressed on Gene's chest with a force that would break ribs. From where she stood, she could see the static of energy, making their hair stand on end.

He was shooting energy into Gene's heart. 'What are you thinking?!' Masako wanted to screech at him, but couldn't find the words to speak.

It felt like hours, days, weeks later. The rest of the group had returned, milling around the scene like a pack of lost puppies, watching helplessly. Even Lin looked lost. The group of bodies had made it down the first flight of stairs and was struggling down the second.

Finally, Gene's body jerked. He sucked in a sharp breath from Yasu's mouth. Yasu jerked back, and they were both coughing. "Yasu?" Gene rasped, "Naru? Guys?" His eyes, clouded, stared around at the group before focusing on Yasu again.

"No time," Monk said, scooping Gene up from the floor, "We have to get to Base."

"What about the children?" John asked, looking to the doors were several of the older teens were watching through the glass.

Naru struggled up, grabbing onto Yasu's shoulder for support. "If they haven't been touched yet, I don't think they will be touched now. He's not interested in them for the time being."

Nodding, John stuck his head through the door. "Will you all be alright?"

The older teens nodded. "Yes, we can defend ourselves. If not, someone will scream," the boy Gene had slammed against the wall said.

Nodding again, John closed the door. "Let's go," Naru said, and stumbled off in the direction of Base.

**Well, there you go. I hope y'all don't hate me too terribly much. I'll see you next chapter for hopefully another Mai appearance.**


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